U.S. Navy Uniform Regulations - The Us Navy: Fill & Download for Free

“Are there occasions when U.S. Military personnel wear the uniform of a different branch of service than the one they are in?”Yes. By US Navy uniform regulations, Navy personnel assigned to Marine Corps units may wear USMC uniforms. Personnel in this situation must meet Marine Corps grooming standards.6501 - Personnel Serving with Marine CorpsAs a Navy officer assigned to a Marine Expeditionary Force (MEF) in the early 2000's, I elected to wear the MARPAT uniform — it reminded me of whose team I was on and it was a very comfortable uniform, especially during hot summer deployments to Iraq (photo below is from Camp Fallujah in 2004).Note the Navy rank device, warfare pin, and staff corps insignia (along with the Navy officer crest on the cover), consessions which were allowed by Navy and Marine Corps regs.Most Navy personnel that serve with Marines are hospital corpsmen, doctors, dentists, chaplains, and your occasional staff engineer (like me), and you will almost always see them wearing Marine Corps utilities when assigned to USMC units. Those that spend a large portion of their careers in Marine units may even purchase USMC service and dress uniforms. I never went that far as my pride and pocketbook were just fine wearing Navy uniforms when I wasn't in the field.When I was assigned to Naval Construction Force units (Seabees), I was perfectly happy wearing Navy utilities, as in this deployment to Latvia a few years back.I have many Navy friends who have served in Army units and were issued the Army Combat Uniform (ACU) as well as the MultiCam. If you are deploying with another service for six months to a year, the least they could do is issue you their combat uniforms!However I have never seen other services wear Navy uniforms when assigned to Navy commands. I guess only the Navy is keen on having personnel assimilate in other service units.Can do!

In the US military, all Services’ grooming standards require males to be clean-shaven, with exceptions for small mustaches, while in a duty status, which for those on active duty is 24/7/365 until their active duty service obligation ends with separation or retirement or death. Certain types of duty and certain commanders may prohibit even the wear of mustaches.[1]Reservists and retirees are required to maintain standards at any time they are in an active or inactive duty status, or in uniform. (Unless explicitly exempted, technically, all reservists and retirees maintain sufficient military status that they remain subject to the administrative regulation of their Service’s grooming regulations, even when no longer in an active duty status, or when retired…I mention this as disclaimer, although the practical reality is that the Services don’t care if retirees grow beards or goatees or handlebar mustaches, or … generally … if a reservist or retiree who isn’t in a duty status or wearing a uniform allows their hair to grow long. The Services do care, though, any time the servicemember — reserves and retirees included — resume a duty status and/or wear their uniform…)See the Service regulations:Army = AR 670–1, Wear and Appearance of Army Uniforms and Insignia [2]Marine = MCO 1020.34H, Marine Corps Uniform Regulations[3]Navy = NAVPERS 15665I, United States Navy Uniform Regulations[4]Air Force = AFI 36-2903, Dress and Personal Appearance of Air Force Personnel[5]Coast Guard = COMDTINST M1020.6J, Uniform Regulations[6]Commissioned Corps of the US Public Health Service = CCI 412.01, Uniforms and Appearance[7]Commissioned Corps of the NOAA = NOAA Corps Directives, Chapter 12, Uniforms and Awards[8]Exceptions would be granted for exceptional circumstances, either through existing lawful regulations, or through local commander’s decisions when operational necessity arises:certain special operations forces and/or missions,undercover or plain-clothes assignments (Army CID, other law enforcement activities, liaison or military attache assignments abroad, etc.),with an accredited medical authority’s specific recommendation to a commanding officer that a particular medical condition (such as pseudofolliculitis barbae (PFB), or a facial wound, or exposure to NBC agents or poison oak, or burns, etc.) is best treated without shaving for a prescribed period of time,other limited exceptions, at varied times and places, always with a commander’s verbal or written authorization.There have been a handful of servicemembers who were provided a Service-level waiver (“accommodation”) to shaving, based on sincerely-held religious beliefs, after lengthy reviews, including some of those listed in Enclosure (5) of DOD Manual 1336.05:[9][10] [11]Sgt. 1st Class Benjamin Hopper, a 34-year-old Alabama native and member of the Nevada Army Guard’s 3665th Ordnance Company, was granted the waiver following a lengthy review process that concluded with the Army’s acknowledgement of his sincerity as a heathen.[12]U.S. Army Spc. Simran Lamba, center, was granted the honor of carrying a red-white-and-blue unit color flag for Alpha company Third Battalion 34th Infantry Regiment, during his basic training graduation ceremony at Fort Jackson, S.C., Wednesday, Nov. 10, 2010. Lamba is the first enlisted Soldier to be granted a religious accommodation for his Sikh articles of faith since 1984. Sikhism, a 500-year-old religion founded in India, requires its male followers to wear a turban and beard and keep their hair uncut. Army policies since 1984 had effectively prevented Sikhs from enlisting by barring those items. But Lamba was granted a rare exception because he has skills the Army wants-- the Indian languages Hindi and Punjabi. (AP Photo/Brett Flashnick)[13]Staff Sgt. Abdul Rahman Gaitan, an airman with the 821st Contingency Response Squadron at Travis Air Force Base, California, was granted the exemption after waiting years for approval, an Air Force release said.[14]See: A ‘defining feature of masculine men’ — soldier’s Norse pagan faith earns beard waiverSince each State or Commonwealth, three Territories, and the District of Columbia, all maintain organized state militia, including army and air National Guard, and several maintain a naval militia, and approximately 25 maintain state-only State Defense Forces (separate parts of that state’s organized militia from any army or air National Guard), it is likely that each such state/commonwealth/territory/district also maintains “State-only” military regulations that govern their own organized militia grooming and wear of uniforms. Each State’s own military regulations must be consulted to determine the particular nature of facial hair, religious accommodations, etc., as applied to the organized militia under state command. For example, here is the New York Naval Militia Uniform and Grooming Regulation: https://dmna.ny.gov/forms/naval/NYNMINST_1020.1D_Uniform_Regulations.pdf.Footnotes[1] https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodi/130017p.pdf[2] https://armypubs.army.mil/epubs/DR_pubs/DR_a/pdf/web/ARN6173_AR670-1_Web_FINAL.pdf[3] https://www.marines.mil/portals/1/Publications/MCO%201020.34H%20v2.pdf?ver=2018-06-26-094038-137[4] Uniform Regulations[5] https://static.e-publishing.af.mil/production/1/af_a1/publication/afi36-2903/afi36-2903.pdf[6] https://media.defense.gov/2018/Dec/13/2002072299/-1/-1/0/CIM_1020_6J.PDF[7] https://dcp.psc.gov/ccmis/ccis/documents/CC412.01.pdf[8] NOAA Corps CPC Procedures[9] https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodm/133605_manual.pdf[10] 42 U.S. Code § 2000bb–1 - Free exercise of religion protected[11] http://1. https://api.army.mil/e2/c/downloads/463407.pdf (https://api.army.mil/e2/c/downloads/463407.pdf)[12] A ‘defining feature of masculine men’ — soldier’s Norse pagan faith earns beard waiver[13] New Army policy OKs soldiers to wear hijabs, turbans and religious beards[14] New Army policy OKs soldiers to wear hijabs, turbans and religious beards

My favorite example of how this can go sideways was a British sergeant major in charge of students at a NATO school. Poor fellow stopped me as I entered the building with my hands in my peacoat pockets, and asked in his frostiest tones. “Did you find it cold outside, sailor?”Now unlike (I presume) the British military, the US Navy DOES allow one to put one’s hands in one’s pockets to keep them warm., or for a variety of other reasons. It’s not, de facto, a uniform faux pas. So not being aware there was a problem, much less that it was my hands in my pockets, I tossed off a cheery “Why yes, Sergeant Major; it IS a bit nippy out.” and carried on to class, leaving him dumbfounded.To be fair, when he cornered me later in the day, I had to show him the actual regulations. But he nodded, realised my response was NOT, in fact, disrespectful, but good natured and friendly, and let the matter drop. To me, that’s a sign of a good NCO.Serving with troops of other nations is always open to funny moments, but professionalism and camaraderie goes a long way to keeping the humor of it all to the fore.Addendum: On a side note, the US Navy is also the only branch of our military that salutes with the left hand, if the right is occupied or injured. It’s a byproduct of ships heeling, and it being dangerous to let go of your handhold at times, I was taught. At a joint service base, that can lead to all sorts of startlement… ;)